Welcome to Professional and Technical Services (PTS) – experts in chemical disinfection for infection prevention. Our goal is to educate and provide you the latest resources related to cleaning and disinfection of environmental surfaces, medical devices and hands. As specialists in disinfectant chemistries, microbiology, environmental cleaning and disinfection, facility assessments and policy and procedure creation we are dedicated to helping any person or facility who uses chemical disinfectants.

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Friday, June 23, 2017

Are you inked?

I’m not, which considering I am known to change the colour
of my hair every five weeks and currently have purple highlights surprises
people. It’s not that I’m against
tattoos, but that I have not yet found a symbol that speaks to me enough to get
one done. The other and probably more
truthful reason is that I had an uncle contract Hep C after getting a
tattoo. From my teens, I knew from an
infection prevention perspective that things can go very, very wrong if
cleaning, disinfection and sterilization is not completed correctly, each and
every time.

While not associated with improper cleaning and
disinfection, there was a recent study published in the British Medical Journal
Case Reports that reviewed the death of a “youngish” male who contracted
flesh-eating bacteria in the area of a newly “inked” tattoo. If it was not associated to cleaning and
disinfection, then what was the cause?
Why, ignoring instructions for care of a newly “inked” tattoo and
swimming in the Gulf of Mexico of course.
According to the study, the infection was caused by Vibrio vulnificus which is present in many marine environments.

According to the CDC, Vibriosis causes an estimated 80,000
illnesses and 100 deaths in the United States every year. Vibrio vulnificus is a Gram-negative
bacillus that only affects humans and other primates. It is in the same family
as bacteria that cause cholera and is found in warm coastal waters, and is
present at higher levels between May and October, hence the reason why you
should not swim with freshly tattooed skin or even cuts or scrapes! Most people will contract an infection after
eating raw seafood that contains the bacteria.
It’s particularly prevalent in oysters,
but that never stops me from eating them!
As described in the study, infection can also occur when the bacteria
enters the body through a break (cut or scrape or tattoo) in the skin, most
likely by swimming in contaminated coastal water.

Does this really have anything to do with cleaning and
disinfection? Not really, but every once and a while you need to take a
detour, and since we’re moving into summertime which signifies swimming,
consider it a public service announcement not to swim for at least 2 weeks
after you have gotten a tattoo! It may
also serve as a reminder for me why I’ve not yet gotten a tattoo. I love the water. I love swimming, boating and paddle
boarding. I now know I’ll never get a
tattoo in the summer!